Paul Tod and Iestyn ap Dafydd took another big step in their rallying careers on the weekend when they made and used his own ‘pace notes’ for the first time.

In an extremely brave move, they opted to use the notorious Manx International Rally as their testing ground, and left the island happy, despite retiring with a failed CV joint on the last day.

Rain and fog made the first day of the three day rally an extreme test in itself, with the fastest stage of the day run in 20 foot visibility, and both runs through the narrow streets of Castletown hampered by standing water.

So it was not until Friday that the pair had the chance to try out their notes in ‘normal’ conditions.  With the first stage cancelled after an accident, they entered the Newtown stage on a mission to make up for time lost on Thursday, but about 2 miles in, they caught a wheel on the bank of a tight right hand bend, and knocked a tyre off the rim.

 “The roads were so narrow, that if we’d stopped there, we could have caused an accident,” explains Paul.  “So we had to drive on to find somewhere to change the wheel.  By the time we were done, the whole incident cost us nearly 5 minutes and ended any chance we had of a decent Cup finish.

 “Once we were that far behind, it was time to drive for a finish and just enjoy the experience,” explains Tod.  “During Friday, we built a total confidence in the new notes, and were looking forward to the classic stages the Saturday offered.

“But we never had the chance to drive on the two stages that we were most looking forward to.  Sulby Glen, the fast, flowing stage down Snae Fell, was cancelled after a competitor had an accident, and on the Ravensdale stage, a CV joint failed, leaving us with no drive, so we even missed the grand Finale, the Barclays Classic, which finished at the TT grandstand in Douglas.

 “We were looking to build on recent good performances on the Manx, and decided to try something new to spark our championship into life,” continues Paul.

“Our standing in the championship doesn’t reflect our performance after problems through the first half of the season, so we needed an extraordinary effort to really seize the momentum and go into the two month break with results on our side.  We identified our pace notes as one area that we might improve.

“To rally fans, the Manx is one of the best known and loved rallies in Britain.  Every bend seems to have the name of a famous driver who crashed there, and every stage of the rally included sections that we have watched on rally videos and heard of in stories… It was exciting and frightening all at the same time.

“Soon we will be entering events where making your own pace notes is essential,” he explains,  “so we have to learn the techniques.

"The Isle of Man is notorious for catching out experienced competitors, so I guess you could say it was a bit brave, or dull, to start here!  But we wanted to see if we could do it, and we are extremely happy with the result!”

“Now, we’re looking forward to getting back onto gravel,” says Tod.  “For a start, I prefer the loose, and the next Stilo Cup rally is in Dalby Forest, scene of the victory which clinched our Peugeot 205 Challenge crown in 2003.  We are also hoping to compete on at least one more event between now and then.”

The Pickering, North Yorkshire based Trackrod rally takes place on October 2/3.